Cowboys climbing, Jayhawks jumping. What’s next for the conference of chaos?

Don’t you love when the good guys win?

It’s no secret Texas and Oklahoma are the villains of the Big 12. After all, it was their jump to the SEC that kick-started this whole realignment debacle in the first place. Seeing either squad lift the conference championship trophy in December would be awkwardly unfortunate.

Thankfully, Mike Gundy understands this, and this past weekend he delivered when the world needed him most.

In what could be the final episode in the famed Bedlam rivalry saga, Gundy’s Oklahoma State squad stunned the hated Sooners in dramatic 27-24 fashion. Not only did the Cowboys leapfrog Oklahoma in the standings, but they essentially ended all Big 12 title hopes for the Sooners this year. Can you say “sweet victory”?

It’s always fun to beat a rival, let alone to spoil their entire season. Accomplishing both in one game must be exhilarating. For Gundy, who’s spent more than three decades at Oklahoma State as both a player and a coach, putting Bedlam to rest with such a profoundly meaningful triumph can’t be anything less than a dream come true. His longtime mullet may be gone, but the magic remains.

With the loss, Oklahoma’s conference record falls to 4-2, now stuck in third place behind the Longhorns, Cowboys and Kansas, who already upset the Sooners just a week before Bedlam. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel is stumbling back to reality. The Sooners defense — a dominant unit in the season’s first half — has now given up more than 30 points per game over the past month.

Not only is a Big 12 championship or playoff berth out of the picture, but a New Year’s Six nod may end up eluding the Norman faithful as well. Such a shame. Well, best of luck in the SEC! Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.

Comeback Cowboys

While Bedlam put Oklahoma’s current collapse on display for the world to see, it also served to showcase Oklahoma State’s impressive resuscitation from the dead.

This same Cowboys team that lost to South Alabama (who?) by 26 points (what?!) now has a direct path to its first conference title since 2011. They’ve gone from an ugly 2-2 at September’s end to rattling off five straight wins and claiming a share of first place in the league despite facing the most challenging slate of conference opponents.

Is this sport great or what?

Gundy better make some room in his trophy case at home, because he’ll be a shoo-in for his third Big 12 Coach of the Year award. Such a turnaround deserves every last drop of recognition and respect should fortune continue to favor the Cowboys.

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• Future Big 12 power rankings: There’s Bedlam — and a new No. 1 — at the top

At the center of Oklahoma State’s resurgence has been running back Ollie Gordon II, the nation’s leading rusher with 1,443 yards and 13 touchdowns already under his belt. The talented sophomore played sparingly in September, only to explode for more than 100 rushing yards in every conference game this season to launch the Cowboys’ offense into a new stratosphere.

Gordon is averaging 7.4 yards per touch, proving lethal both on the ground and as a pass catcher in becoming the current favorite for the league’s Offensive Player of the Year honors. Heck, the kid may even get a few Heisman votes. He’s more than earned them.

If the season ended today, Oklahoma State would face Texas for the conference championship. With only expansion newcomers UCF, Houston and BYU left to play, the Cowboys will most likely make that trip to Jerryworld. Let’s all just hope they get to play someone other than the Longhorns. The conference of chaos deserves the most compelling matchup possible, and an SEC-bound sellout certainly wouldn’t fit the bill.

Jumpin’ Jayhawks

It’s official: Kansas is better than Oklahoma. The College Football Playoff rankings never lie!

Once upon a time not too long ago, Kansas was among the country’s most hapless college football programs, if not the most punchless Power Five squad in the sport. Now, the Jayhawks are ranked No. 16 in the CFP poll and are firmly in the mix for New Year’s Six consideration.

Yes, really.

Oh, and they’re doing it all without their star quarterback — preseason Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year Jalon Daniels — who hasn’t taken a snap since September. Lance Leipold deserves a medal for his efforts in Lawrence.

Kansas is 4-2 in league play and 7-2 overall, already having reached its most wins since 2008 still with three weeks left in the campaign. The Jayhawks’ only losses have come to the conference’s first-place tandem of Texas and Oklahoma State, while toppling the Sooners two weeks ago and pulling out a win in Ames over Iowa State last weekend as well. with a backup quarterback!

Jason Bean has been nothing short of heroic for Kansas, filling in for Daniels by tossing 10 touchdowns and posting an impressive 75.8 QBR clip. Devin Neal and the rest of the Jayhawks run game is averaging 5.2 yards per carry and the front seven on defense is extremely talented. Leipold is building something special in the Sunflower State, and once next year’s expansion completely shifts the league power dynamic, his program should be well-positioned near the top.

With enough chaos these new few weeks, maybe the Jayhawks could be defending a conference crown next year. Finish the fight, Jason Bean!

Embrace the night

It’s now or never for BYU.

Kalani Sitake’s squad is in danger of losing five straight to end its season and miss out on bowl eligibility. Needing just one more win to avoid such a fate, the Cougars may have the supernatural on their side to do so.

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• Does showdown with Iowa State mark BYU’s best opportunity to get bowl eligible?

Reddit users have pointed out an interesting conspiracy theory claiming BYU to be a “vampire team” due to its stark contrast in success between day and night games. Michigan may have the infamous Connor Stalions, but the Cougars have “Twilight” author Stephanie Meyer, so Transylvania tendencies are in this school’s blood — no pun intended.

Since 2019, the Cougars have gone 27-4 in games kicking off later than 6 p.m. local time, with that record falling down to 14-15 in earlier contests. Over the same span, BYU has lost only once in the night at home, making LaVell Edwards Stadium a dangerous venue for opponents after dark. Spooky indeed.

Cougars on the air

Iowa State (4-2, 5-4)
at BYU (2-4, 5-4)
Saturday, 8:15 p.m. MST
LaVell Edwards Stadium
TV: ESPN
Radio: 102.7 FM/1160 AM

Rather than refute such vampire-related notions, BYU is choosing to accept the edge, adopting “embrace the night” as a new rallying cry and unveiling new all-black uniforms to don against Iowa State for Saturday’s 8:15 kickoff. It’s a smart move. Kalani’s crew needs to attempt every possible avenue in order to go bowling this December. Modern problems require modern solutions!

These nocturnal Cougars face quite a challenge Saturday as the Cyclone defense is arguably the league’s toughest, while BYU has managed just 13 total points over the past two weeks and plans to start backup quarterback Jake Retzlaff.

Yet, with Oklahoma and Oklahoma State still on the schedule, the Cougars’ best shot at that sixth win is against Iowa State. To borrow another vampire pun: the stakes have never been higher.

Jackson Payne is the sports editor for the BYU campus publication The Daily Universe. Twitter: @jackson5payne